pagan and christian creeds-第44章

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we　shall　return　to　similar　institutions。　But　that　will　not　be　just　yet。　As　long　as　the　defilement　of　this　commercial　civilization　is　on　us　we　shall　prefer　our　dirt　and　concealment。　The　powers　that　be　will　protest　against　change。　Heinrich　Scham；　in　his　charming　little　pamphlet　Nackende　Menschen；＇2＇　describes　the　consternation　of　the　commercial　people　at　such　ideas：

〃　'What　will　become　of　us；'　cried　the　tailors；　'if　you　go　naked？'

〃And　all　the　lot　of　them；　hat；　cravat；　shirt；　and　shoemakers　joined　in　the　chorus。

〃　'AND　WHERE　SHALL　I　CARRY　MY　MONEY？'　cried　one　who　had　just　been　made　a　director。〃


＇1＇　See　Theocritus；　Idyll　xviii。

＇2＇　Published　at　Leipzig　about　1893。



XIII。　THE　GENESIS　OF　CHRISTIANITY

Referring　back　to　the　existence　of　something　resembling　a　great　World…religion　which　has　come　down　the　centuries；　continually　expanding　and　branching　in　the　process；　we　have　now　to　consider　the　genesis　of　that　special　brand　or　branch　of　it　which　we　call　Christianity。　Each　religion　or　cult；　pagan　or　Christian；　has　had；　as　we　have　seen；　a　vast　amount　in　common　with　the　general　World…religion；　yet　each　has　had　its　own　special　characteristics。　What　have　been　the　main　characteristics　of　the　Christian　branch；　as　differentiating　it　from　the　other　branches？

We　saw　in　the　last　chapter　that　a　certain　ascetic　attitude　towards　Sex　was　one　of　the　most　salient　marks　of　the　Christian　Church；　and　that　whereas　most　of　the　pagan　cults　（though　occasionally　favoring　frightful　austerities　and　cruel　sacrifices）　did　on　the　whole　rejoice　in　pleasure　and　the　world　of　the　senses；　Christianityfollowing　largely　on　Judaismdisplayed　a　tendency　towards　renunciation　of　the　world　and　the　flesh；　and　a　withdrawal　into　the　inner　and　more　spiritual　regions　of　the　mind。　The　same　tendency　may　be　traced　in　the　Egyptian　and　Phrygian　cults　of　that　period。　It　will　be　remembered　how　Juvenal　（Sat。　VI；　510…40）　chaffs　the　priests　of　Cybele　at　Rome　for　making　themselves　〃eunuchs　for　the　kingdom　of　heaven's　sake；〃　or　the　rich　Roman　lady　for　plunging　in　the　wintry　Tiber　for　a　propitiation　to　Isis。　No　doubt　among　the　later　pagans　〃the　long　intolerable　tyranny　of　the　senses　over　the　soul〃　had　become　a　very　serious　matter。　But　Christianity　represented　perhaps　the　most　powerful　reaction　against　this；　and　this　reaction　had；　as　indicated　in　the　last　chapter；　the　enormously　valuable　result　that　（for　the　time）　it　disentangled　love　from　sex　and　established　Love；　pure　and　undefiled；　as　ruler　of　the　world。　〃God　is　Love。〃　But；　as　also　indicated；　the　divorce　between　the　two　elements　of　human　nature；　carried　to　an　extreme；　led　in　time　to　a　crippling　of　both　elements　and　the　development　of　a　certain　morbidity　and　self…consciousness　which；　it　cannot　be　denied；　is　painfully　marked　among　some　sections　of　Christiansespecially　those　of　the　altruistic　and　'philanthropic'　type。

Another　characteristic　of　Christianity　which　is　also　very　fine　in　its　way　but　has　its　limits　of　utility；　has　been　its　insistence　on　〃morality。〃　Some　modern　writers　indeed　have　gone　so　farforgetting；　I　suppose；　the　Stoicsas　to　claim　that　Christianity's　chief　mark　is　its　high　morality；　and　that　the　pagans　generally　were　quite　wanting　in　the　moral　sense！　This；　of　course；　is　a　profound　mistake。　I　should　say　that；　in　the　true　sense　of　the　word；　the　early　and　tribal　peoples　have　been　much　more　'moral'　as　a　rulethat　is；　ready　as　individuals　to　pay　respect　to　the　needs　of　the　communitythan　the　later　and　more　civilized　societies。　But　the　mistake　arises　from　the　different　interpretations　of　the　word；　for　whereas　all　the　pagan　religions　insisted　very　strongly　on　the　just…　mentioned　kind　of　morality；　which　we　should　call　cIVIC　DUTY　TO　ONE'S　NEIGHBOR；　the　Christian　made　morality　to　consist　more　especially　in　a　mans　DUTY　TO　GOD。　It　became　with　them　a　private　affair　between　a　mans　self　and…God；　rather　than　a　public　affair；　and　thus　led　in　the　end　to　a　very　obnoxious　and　quite　pharisaic　kind　of　morality；　whose　chief　inspiration　was　not　the　helping　of　one's　fellow…man　but　the　saving　of　one's　own　soul。

There　may　perhaps　be　other　salient　points　of　differentiation　between　Christianity　and　the　preceding　pagan　religions；　but　for　the　present　we　may　recognize　these　two（a）　the　tendency　towards　a　renunciation　of　the　world；　and　the　consequent　cultivation　of　a　purely　spiritual　love　and　（b）　the　insistence　on　a　morality　whose　inspiration　was　a　private　sense　of　duty　to　God　rather　than　a　public　sense　of　duty　to　one's　neighbor　and　to　society　generally。　It　may　be　interesting　to　trace　the　causes　which　led　to　this　differentiation。

Three　centuries　before　our　era　the　conquests　of　Alexander　had　had　the　effect　of　spreading　the　Greek　thought　and　culture　over　most　of　the　known　world。　A　vast　number　of　small　bodies　of　worshipers　of　local　deities；　with　their　various　rituals　and　religious　customs；　had　thus　been　broken　up；　or　at　least　brought　into　contact　with　each　other　and　partially　modified　and　hellenized。　The　orbit　of　a　more　general　conception　of　life　and　religion　was　already　being　traced。　By　the　time　of　the　founding　of　the　first　Christian　Church　the　immense　conquests　of　Rome　had　greatly　extended　and　established　the　process。　The　Mediterranean　had　become　a　great　Roman　lake。　Merchant　ships　and　routes　of　traffic　crossed　it　in　all　directions；　tourists　visited　its　shores。　The　known　world　had　become　one。　The　numberless　peoples；　tribes；　nations；　societies　within　the　girdle　of　the　Empire；　with　their　various　languages；　creeds；　customs；　religions；　philosophies；　were　profoundly　influencing　each　other。＇1＇　A　great　fusion　was　taking　place；　and　it　was　becoming　inevitable　that　the　next　great　religious　movement　would　have　a　world…wide　character。

＇1＇　For　an　enlargement　on　this　theme　see　Glover's　Conflict　of　Religions　in　the　early　Roman　Empire；　also　S。　J。　Case；　Evolution　of　Early　Christianity（University　of　Chicago；　1914）。　The　Adonis　worship；　for　instance　（a　resurrection…cult）；　〃was　still　thriving　in　Syria　and　Cyprus　when　Paul　preached　there；〃　and　the　worship　of　Isis　and　Serapis　had　already　reached　then；　Rome　and　Naples。


It　was　probable　that　this　new　religion　would　combine　many　elements　from　the　preceding　rituals　in　one　cult。　In　connection　with　the　fine　temples　and　elaborate　services　of　Isis　and　Cybele　and　Mithra　there　was　growing　up　a　powerful　priesthood；　Franz　Cumont＇1＇　speaks　of　〃the　learned　priests　of　the　Asiatic　cults〃　as　building　up；　on　the　foundations　of　old　fetichism　and　superstition；　a　complete　religious　philosophyjust　as　the　Brahmins　had　built　the　monism　of　the　Vedanta　on　the　〃monstrous　idolatries　of　Hinduism。〃　And　it　was　likely　that　a　similar　process　would　evolve　the　new　religion　expected。　Toutain　again　calls　attention　to　the　patronage　accorded　to　all　these　cults　by　the　Roman　Emperors；　as　favoring　a　new　combination　and　synthesis：　〃Hadrien；　Commode；　Septime　Severe；　Julia　Domna；　Elagabal；　Alexandre　Severe；　en　particulier　ont　contribube　personnellement　a　la　popularite　et　au　succes　des　cultes　qui　se　celebraient　en　l'honneur　de　Serapis　et　d'Isis；　des　divinites　syriennes　et　de　Mithra。〃＇2＇

＇1＇　See　Cumont；　Religions　Orientales　dans　le　Paganisme　Romain　（Paris；　1906）；　p。　253。

＇2＇　Cultes　paiens　dans　l'Empire　Romain　（2　vols。；　1911）；　vol。　ii；　p。　263。


It　was　also　probable　that　this　new　Religion　would　show　（as　indicated　in　the　last　chapter）　a　reaction　against　mere　sex…indulgence；　and；　as　regards　its　standard　of　Morality　generally；　that；　among　so　many　conflicting　peoples　with　their　various　civic　and　local　customs；　it　could　not　well　identify　itself　with　any　ONE　of　these　but　would　evolve　an　inner　inspiration　of　its　own　which　in　its　best　form　would　be　love　of　the　neighbor；　regardless　of　the　race；　creed　or　customs　of　the　neighbor；　and　whose　sanction　would　not　reside　in　any　of　the　external　authorities　thus　conflicting　with　each　other；　but　in　the　sense　of　the　soul's　direct　responsibility　to　God。

So　much　for　what　we　might　expect　a　priori　as　to　the　influence　of　the　surroundings　on　the　general　form　of　the　new　Religion。　And　what　about　the　kind　of　creed　or　creeds　which　that　religion　would　favor？　Here　again　we　must　see　that　the　influence　of　the　surroundings　compelled　a　certain　result。　Those　doctrines　which　we　have　described　in　the　preceding　chaptersdoctrines　o